1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to lures, bait, and other devices for attracting fish and game, and more specifically to various embodiments of a fishing lure in which the tail portion of the lure may be exchanged for different configurations. Different tail portions may have different appearances, and/or may be provided with different scents and/or flavors for attracting different types of fish under various conditions. The forward portion of the lure may include flotation means, a concave "bill" to produce turbulence and noise in the water to attract fish, and other lure features as desired.
2. Description of the Related Art
For most people, fishing and hunting have evolved from livelihood activities to sporting or recreational activities with the advance of civilization. As with most hobbies, those involved are interested in gaining the most recreational satisfaction from their time. In the sport of fishing, this means that the typical angler is interested in attracting and catching fish with the greatest efficiency possible.
Bait, lures, and the like have long been known as means for increasing one's catch, by attracting fish to the bait or lure and encouraging the fish to take the bait or lure and its accompanying hook. However, fish often are not attracted to various types of baits and lures, for various reasons. Accordingly, anglers have spent considerable effort in determining just which baits or lures attract various types of fish under various conditions.
One point of which practically all anglers are aware, is that different bait or lures are attractive to the same type of fish at different times, even in the same area. For this reason, most anglers will carry perhaps a few different types of bait (worms, salmon eggs, insects, etc.) and a number of different artificial lures, along with various additives which may be applied to the lures to enhance their scent or flavor to fish, whenever they go fishing. Such lures are generally integral units, with each having its own hook(s), leader attachment, etc., as required for the typical lure. The result is generally a relatively crowded and tangled tackle box, with most of the clutter comprising lures which are seldom used and which may not be used at all on any given fishing outing.
Accordingly, a need will be seen for a fishing lure having multiple interchangeable tail portions. The forward body portion of the lure is preferably formed of a relatively hard material, with the removable tail portions formed of a soft resilient material which is secured frictionally within a cooperating fitting in the forward body portion. The tail portions may be provided with different shapes, colors, scents, flavors, etc., to attract different types of fish, or fish under different conditions, while using the same forward body portion. The forward portion may include hook(s), leader attachment, flotation means, etc.
A discussion of the related art of which the present inventor is aware, and its differences and distinctions from the present invention, is provided below.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,207,425 issued on Jul. 9, 1940 to Fred A. Arbogast, titled "Artificial Fish Bait," describes a lure comprising a single body portion formed of a hard material (as is apparent from the screws inserted therein to attach various components thereto). The forward portion of the lure includes a laterally symmetrical "bill" extending to each side. This "bill" portion differs from the present lure, in that it is simply formed and has only a single lateral concave curvature thereacross. In contrast, the present lure bill has a separate concave curvature to each side of the central attachment area. In any case, the Arbogast lure has no separable tail component which may be interchanged according to conditions, as provided by the present lure.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,261,867 issued on Nov. 4, 1941 to Fred A. Arbogast, titled "Artificial Fish Bait," describes a lure similar to that of the '425 U.S. Patent to the same inventor, described immediately above. The '867 patent describes specific hook attachment means. The same distinctions noted above in the discussion of the '425, are felt to apply here as well.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,429,339 issued to Fred Arbogast on Oct. 21, 1947, titled "Hook Attachment For Artificial Bait," describes another hook attachment means similar to that disclosed in the '867 U.S. Patent to the same inventor, described immediately above. Again, the same points of distinction are seen to apply here, as none of the Arbogast lures have a double convex forward bill or a separable tail portion, as provided by the present fishing lure.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,604,718 issued on Jul. 29, 1952 to Neal S. Crumb, titled "Artificial Bait," describes a lure having a unitary solid body portion, with no interchangeable portions being provided. The front of the lure includes a "bill" component which is concavely dished to each side of the centerline. However, the Crumb lure is primarily adapted for bottom fishing, as shown in FIG. 1 of the Crumb patent. The angle of incidence of the "bill" portion with the body is negative, i. e., the forward edge is angled downwardly relative to the rest of the lure, in order to drive the forward end of the lure downwardly against the bottom when the lure is drawn through the water. Accordingly, the leader attachment eye is above and behind the "bill" portion, rather than at the front of the bill, as in the present lure. While Crumb also provides a lure embodiment having flotation, he must also provide for the rear portion of his lure to sink considerably below the forward portion, thus producing an unnatural attitude, in order to provide the proper angle of attack for the bill portion when the lure is drawn across the surface of the water. The present lure is adapted for flotation, and avoids such problems.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,958,152 issued on Nov. 1, 1960 to James G. Kyper, titled "Artificial Fish Lure," describes a lure having a frame to which hooks and leader attachment eye are secured, with different lure bodies being interchangeably attached to the frame. The lure bodies are formed of a hard and rigid material, in order to provide the required grip to each side of the frame portion. While Kyper discloses a double concave "bill," the bill is integrated with the frame, rather than the lure body. In any event, Kyper does not disclose any removable tail portion which is interchangeably attached to the main body portion of the lure, as in the present lure invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,074,455 issued on Feb. 21, 1978 to William O. Williams, Jr., titled "Fishing Lure," describes a lure having a forward body portion formed of a flexible, resilient material with a multitude of small pockets formed in the surface thereof. These pockets entrap air bubbles as the lure is immersed in water, to provide a shimmering appearance and to release air in a realistic manner. The tail portion is a flat, flexible material or a series of hair-like strands. In both cases, the tail is permanently affixed to the forward body portion, and cannot be exchanged in the field or without damaging the lure. Williams, Jr. does not disclose any form of "bill" for his lure, nor the removable attachment of a flexible, resilient tail portion removably attached to a rigid forward body portion, as provided by the present fishing lure invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,887,377 issued on Dec. 19, 1989 to John L. Morris, titled "Shad Type Fish Bait With Nose Cavity," describes a lure having an elongated, soft plastic body with a cavity for the insertion of a weight therein in the forward portion thereof. The entire lure is an integral component, with the forward portion and tail being formed of the same resilient material. No bill or the like is provided for producing turbulence along the surface of the water, as provided by the present invention, as the Morris lure is adapted for use beneath the surface for shad fishing, as opposed to the use of the present lure in attracting fish on or near the surface of the water.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,953,319 issued on Sep. 4, 1990 to John M. Kasper et al., titled "Multi-Attractant Fish Bait," describes a lure having a body formed as a single component of soft, flexible material. Pockets are formed within the body for removably holding sound and light producing elements, as desired. The tail portion of the Kasper et al. lure is not interchangeable or separable from the forward portion, as in the case of the present lure. The soft, resilient body portion of the Kasper et al. lure does not lend itself to the attachment of a rigid "bill" device thereto, as provided in the present fishing lure.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,959,920 issued on Oct. 2, 1990 to Wendall C. Walker, titled "Multi-Action Fishing Lure," describes a lure having forward and rearward portions each formed of a hard, rigid material. The two portions are movably linked together, but cannot be separated from one another in the field, as in the case of the present fishing lure. The front of the lure includes a pair of vanes extending laterally therefrom, but these differ from the bill of the present lure, in that the vanes of the Walker lure (1) angle forwardly and downwardly, which would tend to pull the lure beneath the surface, rather than lifting it atop the surface, as in the case of the present lure; and (2) the vanes of the Walker lure are flat and cannot produce any dynamic action due to curvature, as provided by the forward double concave curvature of the bill portion of the present lure.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,301,453 issued on Apr. 12, 1994 to Maurice W. Terrill, titled "Fish Lure With Interchangeable Body Section," describes a lure having forward and rearward components both formed of a soft, resilient plastic material. The rearward end of the forward portion has a tapered oval shape, with the forward end of the tail portion having a mating socket formed therein. The tail portion is worked onto the rearward end of the forward portion to secure it thereto. Additional security is provided by a hook attachment screw which is screwed through the wall of the socket of the tail portion and into the rearward portion of the forward body portion of the lure. However, the soft, resilient material of which the forward portion of the Terrill lure is formed, cannot provide substantial grip for such screw attachment means; the tail portion could be pulled from the forward portion in the event of a strike by a fish. Also, the bill of the Terrill lure is flat and is not angled to produce turbulence in the water, as in the case of the bill of the present fishing lure.
British Patent Publication No. 155,479 accepted on Dec. 23, 1920 to Margaret White, titled "Improved Phantom Minnow," describes a lure having an inflatable air bladder extending rearwardly from the head portion. While the bladder portion is flexible and the forward head portion is rigid, the rearward portion comprising the bladder is not removable from the forward head portion of the White lure. Moreover, the vanes extending laterally from the head comprise a spinner (line 43 of the disclosure), with the resultant spinning action not being desirable in the present fishing lure.
Finally, Canadian Patent Publication No. 594,616 issued on Mar. 22, 1960 to Raymond O. Tibbetts, titled "Fishing Lure," describes a spoon type lure having a thin curved body portion for producing an oscillating motion through the water. The spoon is formed of a thin, hard sheet of material, as indicated by the attachment of the hook thereto by means of a screw which is installed in a hole threaded into the spoon. No soft, resilient components are provided with the Tibbetts lure, either removably or permanently attached thereto. In addition, Tibbetts does not disclose any forward bill portion extending from the spoon, nor any flotation means for his lure. While the present lure may utilize a weed guard, as known in the art and disclosed in the Tibbetts Canadian Patent Publication, the present lure differs considerably from the hard, flat spoon configuration of Tibbetts.
None of the above inventions and patents, either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed.